Meet the 2018 presidential candidates: Tony Ahlstrom
Editor’s note: The presidential candidate profiles are part of The Utah Statesman’s annual special elections insert. Click below to see the elections insert in its entirety.
Though Tony Ahlstrom has only spent slightly more than two years at Utah State University, he’s dedicated his collegiate experience to involvement and service. He hopes to extend that experience to the USU Student Association president position.
As a freshman, Ahlstrom served on the 2017-18 USUSA campaigns of Chelsea Yoshikawa, Cody Davis and Michael Scott Peters The three encouraged him to seek involvement in various organizations, citing his bubbly personality and willingness to serve.
Ahlstrom, a sophomore majoring in communication studies, spent the 2017 summer as an Aggie Blue Leadership Conference facilitator, and currently serves on the President’s Cabinet, the Student Alumni Association and as a “founding father” of USU’s newest fraternity, Phi Gamma Delta.
“I see this as an opportunity to serve even further. As an opportunity to reach people even further and to give back to more people,” Ahlstrom said.
Though Ahlstrom is now a “true-blooded Aggie,” he was raised a “die-hard” Brigham Young University fan. His parents and older brother attended the university, but after touring USU and receiving scholarships, Ahlstrom’s mind was set on “the spot where the sagebrush grows.”
“As soon as I came here, I thought, ‘This is where I’m going to be, this is where I’m going to end up, this is where I want to be,’” he said. “It’s a family, and you can really feel the difference.”
Ahlstrom received an academic scholarship, but deferred it to serve a mission in Armenia for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
When he returned and settled into his new Logan home, he was greeted with a smiling face from a big name on campus: Michael Scott Peters. Peters lived near Ahlstrom and invited him to work on his presidential campaign later in the year.
Involvement on various campaigns sparked Ahlstrom’s interest in running for office.
Until recently, his plan was to serve as Jonathan Ambrose’s campaign manager, until Ambrose decided against running. Ahlstrom then set his eyes on running for Student Alumni Association vice president, but sharing his goals with others gave him a desire for something bigger.
“I just felt like it was really an opportunity to reach a greater service load for our students,” he said.
Ahlstrom said he plans to expand on all of Peters’ current initiatives, and he hopes to specifically continue mental health awareness and sexual assault awareness.
He also plans to shift a wider focus to networking with alumni, a passion he has gained while serving on the Student Alumni Association. He’s a “really big fan” of the networking events and opportunities at USU.
If elected, Ahlstrom hopes to enact a job-shadow program where current students can spend a few days with a former student in their career field.
Overall, Ahlstrom would like to see students “excel” rather than just feel complacent at USU.
“Not just feel welcome, but thrive and do what they want to do,” he said. “Not just feel comfortable being here, but really be who they are and feel comfortable sharing who they are.”
In his free time, Ahlstrom enjoys playing Pokemon on his Game Boy, reading and spending time with his friends. And although he’s experienced “a lot of hate” for it, he’s a dedicated New England Patriots fan. He has been since he was nine years old and watched them succeed on his dad’s fantasy football team.
A little-known fact about himself, Ahlstrom said, is that he took voice lessons from a teacher who took lessons from Michael Jackson’s voice teacher.
Although his bleach-blonde hair isn’t what naturally grows, dying his hair every spring is a tradition he’s held deeply since high school, when his soccer team dyed their hair every playoff season.
“I’ve done it almost every spring, just as a reminder of that. A reminder of how to accomplish something, to keep your confidence high,” he said.
Ahlstrom’s friends also spoke to his dedication to involvement and caringness as a friend.
“He’s really concerned that everybody feels included. If there’s a big group of people, he makes sure everybody feels included, everybody knows who everybody is. That’s something I admire about Tony,” said Jesse Steadman, a friend of Ahlstrom’s.
The two met as Aggie Blue Leadership Conference facilitators, and “just had a really good vibe right off the bat,” Steadman said. “He really draws that balance between professionalism and also having a good time.”
Inspired by “The Greatest Showman,” Ahlstrom’s campaign theme is “come alive.”
“I really want to see everyone come to the limelight,” he said. “It may be weird at first, but in the end, it’s going to create a legacy.”
USUSA primary voting begins Feb. 26 and ends the next day. Final voting begins Feb. 28 and ends March 1. Additional information on the elections can be found at ususa.usu.edu.
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